Check out our interview with Robbie Couch, the author of "Just the Good Parts."

What was your inspiration behind Just the Good Parts?

I’m a very nostalgic person. And nostalgia is a tricky thing! I think appreciating your past can be incredibly beneficial in grounding you in gratitude, but it can also leave you feeling like your best days are behind you. Just the Good Parts explores that balance, challenging what parts of your past are good and which are bad.

What does Reading Rainbow mean to you?

I try to embrace queer storytelling in all of its messy, beautiful, complex glory. LGBTQ people and our stories have been systemically underrepresented in our culture, including in publishing, so to me, reading with pride is a challenge to consume, spotlight, and champion queer stories and the creators telling them.

Why do you feel representation of a variety of people is so important when it comes to writing books?

It’s incredibly empowering to see yourself reflected back in the culture around you. It’s difficult to see your potential or know your worth when the world is signaling to you that you’re less than or inherently flawed because of who you are. To feel seen and respected as your authentic self can change a young reader’s life.

What can fans expect from your book?

Just the Good Parts follows Caspen on his quest to find his missing father even though his mom, the local police, and seemingly everyone else in town has given up on finding him. I strived for this book to be equal parts heartfelt and head-spinning—with a twist or two along the way.

What's up next for you in the bookish world?

To be determined! I’m straddling the world of YA and adult fiction at the moment and have ideas up my sleeve in both domains. In an ideal world, I can write books in both spaces. Fingers crossed I can make that my reality moving forward!